Dept. of Education launches LEARNS website

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas’ bold, new education law – Arkansas LEARNS – now has its own website: https://learns.ade.arkansas.gov.

The Arkansas Department of Education recently launched a one-stop website to spotlight the Arkansas LEARNS Act and implementation while also promoting transparency. An acronym for Literacy, Empowerment, Accountability, Readiness, Networking, and School Safety, LEARNS is the most comprehensive education reform law ever passed in Arkansas.

Since Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed the Arkansas LEARNS Act into law on March 8, the department has hit the ground running with a focus on implementation.

“We promised the governor, legislators, and the public that we would implement the LEARNS law with fidelity and transparency, and this new website helps us fulfil that commitment,” ADE Secretary Jacob Oliva said. “The site serves as another communications tool that promotes the sharing of education information with students, parents, and educators.”

In addition to a link to the LEARNS law, the site also features an Executive Orders tab at the top that includes links to executive orders that pertain to the department. ADE’s response to each of the orders is posted in this section.

Executive Order 23-08, which prioritizes LEARNS, serves as the main executive order for the department. Comprehensive responses, which include commitments from the department, are located under the Executive Orders tab, as well as in the Action Items and Reports tabs at the top of the site.

In addition to these sections, the LEARNS website also includes a Work Groups section with information about the groups that will develop recommendations for the rule-making process, as well as information about the ADE Transparency Dashboards, student statistics, school districts, and staff members.